Lady Tigers defeat Logan Elm in OT

It took overtime and some clutch free throws down the stretch for the McClain Lady Tigers to win their 20th game of the season, a hard-fought and exciting 55-51 victory over Logan Elm.

This game came on the heels of Saturday’s Frontier Athletic Conference championship-deciding game that saw the Lady Tigers slip by Hillsboro 39-37 for the outright FAC title.

The Lady Braves also play in one the toughest conferences in the state, and four of their 10 losses had come to undefeated and top-seeded Fairfield Union and second-seeded Circleville.

“We knew coming into this game that Logan Elm was a very good and well-coached team that was really quick both offensively and defensively and probably deserved a lot better seeding for the tournament,” said McClain head coach Shania Massie. “They lost a lot of close games to some really good teams, and that’s why their record was what it was.

“They are actually in the bottom of our bracket, so we might see them again down the road, but now we know what we need to adjust if that would play out.”

McClain senior post player Anna Eikenberry was the Lady Tigers’ leading scorer with a team-high 16 points and was a force inside the entire game. It was a huge difference for her offensively from Saturday’s FAC championship game, where she had an off day scoring but was superb on the defensive end.

“Anna (Eikenberry) really stepped up tonight,” Massie said. “She didn’t have a great offensive game on Saturday but still played great defense, but tonight she was really big for us on offense, and we really need that.”

The game was close throughout, and the Lady Tigers never trailed over the first three quarters and into the middle of the fourth until Logan Elm took their first lead of the game, 47-46 on a long three-point shot by Kimmy Petty with just four minutes left in regulation. Petty finished the game with 17 points for the Lady Braves.

Their lead was short-lived after Eikenberry scored two quick baskets for McClain on back-to-back trips down the floor to put the Lady Tigers up 50-47 with just over a minute left on the clock.

This time it was Logan Elm responding seconds later with a game-tying 3-pointer by junior point guard Kiannah Ingram to send the game into an extra session. Ingram finished the contest with a game-high 27 points for the Lady Braves.

Ingram and Petty (who is just a sophomore) combined for 44 of Logan Elm’s 51 points in the game, and the backcourt duo also caused a lot of havoc the entire game with their quickness and defense and were the main reason that they were able to keep the game close.

Eikenberry was complemented in scoring by Paisley Pryor and Larah Henson, who both added 14 points each for the Lady Tigers.
In the overtime period, neither team could score a field goal, but the Lady Tigers managed to win the game at the free-throw line, making 5-of-8 charity tosses compared to just one made out of four attempts by the Lady Braves.

Senior Katie Cook, who is one of McClain’s defensive specialists, made probably the two biggest with just 41 seconds left in the overtime period that gave the Lady Tigers a 54-50 advantage and some breathing room at the end.

McClain now will finish the regular season on Wednesday, Feb. 5 with a senior night showdown against Miami Trace for a chance to win the coveted gold basketball, which is awarded for having an undefeated conference record for the season.

“I told the girls after the game tonight that the game Wednesday against Miami Trace is not only our senior night, but a big opportunity to go into the tournament with a couple of huge wins,” said Massie.

“This season (20-1) has been unbelievable, and it’s not about me and the coaches but about these girls. They’ve put in the work and did everything we’ve asked of them, and I’ve so very proud of them because they’ve definitely owned this season, that’s for sure.”

Individual scoring for McClain: Larah Henson 6,1,14, Katie Cook 1,3,5, Paisley Pryor 6,2,14, Brenna Wright 1,0,2, Anna Eikenberry 7,2,16, Leah Lovett 1,0,2, Totals 24,7,55. 3-point goals- Henson 1, Pryor 1.

McClain converted 7-of-12 foul shots for 59 percent.

Logan Elm (10-11) was led by Kiannah Ingram with 27 points, followed by Kimmy Petty with 17. Lady Braves made 10-of-16 free throws for 63 percent.

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